"Done for the Day"

"Done for the Day", 30" x 40" oil on canvas, 2007
Private Collection

I have been working on this painting off and on for a while and just finished it and took it down to my gallery. I had done a small one in the spring and thought that it would make a great large painting. The light on the front of the church in Atotonilco and the shadow in the foreground make for a dramatic composition. It took me a while to finish it up because I would bring it down from my studio and hang it in different parts of my house to see how it would look. Then take it back up into my studio and make small corrections. I'll often hang on to a painting like that for a while so I can look at it in different light at different times of day. It's easy to make a painting look good with a light on it down at the gallery, but I want them to look good when some one walks into the room and the lights are out. Then when a light goes on it it just looks even better. It's real important to get your values right for a painting to work well in a darkened room. That is Alfredo walking in front of the church on his way home with the stuff from his wife's food stand down the street. I've known him since I moved to Mexico about 18 years ago. He is a real nice guy. You can see the smaller version of this painting and another painting of Alfredo on my web site. frankgardner.com